I was just curious about whether or not the dues are paid monthly or else otherwise paid yearly. I would like to know because I'm on a fixed income, so it matters. Please and thank you.

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The best way to answer this question is to put it to the lodge you are looking to join - they will have a cost and collection structure which will be their own.

Thanks said, most Grand Lodges (peak body) have a Grand Lodge Fee, and this will be combined with your Local Lodge Fee to arrive at an annual figure for ongoing membership. Many places in America charge "Degree Fees" which be payable for your degrees, in some places, the combined annual figure will not start until you have moved through those degrees. The Local Lodge Fee itself will vary because they are set by lodge members and therefore will reflect the aspirations for level of service (generally dining but perhaps other things) they want to provide to members; as decided by members. Lodge fees also meet operational costs such as paying rent for space you meet in.

I'm from Melbourne Australia, which would be considered expensive by many members of this board, but Lodge fees here are typically $200-$400 per year with a Grand Lodge Fee of $114.95.

Hopefully a Brother from Illinois will chime in and a give indication of local fees

Some bodies might allow members to pay monthly instead of annually, but I can tell you that as the treasurer of three bodies, good luck finding someone to take the job (or the secretary's) if people paid monthly. The paperwork would be a nightmare.

From my short time as a lodge secretary, I agree with Brother Joe. I'm sure your jurisdiction has a certain date per capita tax must be paid to the Grand Lodge. Be pretty hard on the lodge if folks paid monthly.

Some bodies might allow members to pay monthly instead of annually, but I can tell you that as the treasurer of three bodies, good luck finding someone to take the job (or the secretary's) if people paid monthly. The paperwork would be a nightmare.

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I am a secretary. I have 3 members paying $50 fortnightly to catch up - it all hinges on two things to make it easy, a good system for dues tracking (which I had to alter to accommodate this) and electronic banking where the payee makes good notes in the payments section of the EFT.

Mr. Hyland, you had mentioned wanting to join on a different thread. I would highly suggest going to your local lodge to see what they say about joining and if it is the right fit for you. There is no shame in waiting. Many guys were in the 30s, 40s and 50s when they joined. The last thing Freemasonry should be is a financial burden on you and most dues are not very much. Many are still under $100 a year. If that is a bit of a stretch now, I'd honestly say wait a few years or even longer until you are able to devote your money and time to the Craft; which is as little or as much as you'd like. The old saying you get out of it what you put into it does apply here as well. Again, no shame in waiting and most Masons were not in their early 20s when they joined. At least nowadays, maybe some of the more senior members were but times have changed.

I was just curious about whether or not the dues are paid monthly or else otherwise paid yearly. I would like to know because I'm on a fixed income, so it matters. Please and thank you.

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Neither of my Illinois lodges are able to handle monthly payments. The treasurer and secretary are not full time jobs and they don't have the time to handle the accounting. I do know some Brothers who had to save up during the year to get together the $100 of the annual dues.

The dues at my lodge are only $120 per year and paid at the beginning of the year. We have had brothers who were short on funds before and other brothers covered it for them and were repaid in due time by the one who received said benefit. I know that a debt owed can be something that ruins a friendship. We have been fortunate that the circumstance has not happened but a time or two and the debts paid in a timely fashion.

Our Secretary gave the "heads up" that dues notices will be sent out in the next week or so and that they are due before Midnight 12/31/18. With our dues notice there is also a plea for brothers to donate more funds in order to provide a reserve amount to cover the dues of Brothers in need. Our dues are only $90.00 per year, so many Brothers do pay double in order to help out other Brothers on fixed incomes or in distress. Our Almoner keep up on who needs help and the Elected Officers and he will reach out to those Brothers proactively before dues are "late." I will say that during the "getting to know you" phase prior to a petition and during the investigation process, if a potential candidate had doubts as to whether or not they could afford the initial degree fees ($350.00) and annual dues ($90.00) they would be encouraged to wait until they were more financially stable before attempting to join. It may sound harsh to someone on the outside but it is one thing to offer assistance to a Brother of many years who falls on hard times vs someone seeking admittance and charity right off the bat.

Our Secretary also announced that this year and going forward we will be able to pay dues on-line through the Lodge "Secret" Facebook Page and Website and also through card swipe via the Secretary's smartphone, at a $3.00 premium to cover PayPal administrative charges. I am sue many of our more "Tech Friendly" Brothers will take advantage of this.

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